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Going into the NHL draft, the Winnipeg Jets are a little like the barometric pressure these days: they could go up, they could go down.

Holding the 13th pick, GM Kevin Cheveldayoff says there's plenty of action on the phone lines as teams jostle for position in advance of the annual talent derby, June 30 in New Jersey.

"I'm trying to move up," Cheveldayoff said, Monday. "As high as is potentially possible. The reality is a lot of teams are making those calls right now....potentially finding your guy with a later pick and moving down are different options as well.

"There are teams that have contacted me below us that have asked if we would move down in the draft. But my focus... would be to see if there's an opportunity to move up."

Cheveldayoff wouldn't rule out moving up into the top-five, but it's more likely he'd only be able to swing a deal that pushes the Jets up a notch or two.

"To move from 13 to a very high pick is a very difficult thing to do. But there are different ways you could potentially go about doing that."

Cheveldayoff also suggested one of his second-round picks could be up for grabs. In addition to their first-round pick, the Jets hold three picks in the second round, another two in the third, in what scouts say is one of the deepest drafts in years.

"The second round is extremely important, whether we choose to draft them or whether we use the picks in some form of currency," the third-year GM said. "Even though you can look at historical values, it's hard to predict what's going to happen on the floor.

"Anytime you try to talk to a team about moving up a substantial amount, the first thing they want is a roster player. Then maybe it goes to draft picks and stuff like that."

As for what kind of player the Jets might take with their first pick, if they remain at 13th, Cheveldayoff wouldn't tip his hand.

While there's a general consensus on the top three picks -- forwards Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin and defenceman Seth Jones, not necessarily in that order -- things get a little dicey after that.

"Once you get beyond a certain point... that's when the uncertainty and volatility will start to happen," Cheveldayoff said. "We have a group of guys we think could be there, so we've kind of beaten them up internally.

"The best bet is we're going to go with the best player. But depending on how close we think that best player is... centre and defence are positions you can never have enough of."

The Jets have already interviewed many prospects, and will conduct a second round of interviews just before the draft.

Jets GM willing to listen to draft-day deals but only if it's worth his while

Going into the NHL draft, the Winnipeg Jets are a little like the barometric pressure these days: they could go up, they could go down.

Holding the 13th pick, GM Kevin Cheveldayoff says there's plenty of action on the phone lines as teams jostle for position in advance of the annual talent derby, June 30 in New Jersey.

"I'm trying to move up," Cheveldayoff said, Monday. "As high as is potentially possible. The reality is a lot of teams are making those calls right now....potentially finding your guy with a later pick and moving down are different options as well.

"There are teams that have contacted me below us that have asked if we would move down in the draft. But my focus... would be to see if there's an opportunity to move up."

Cheveldayoff wouldn't rule out moving up into the top-five, but it's more likely he'd only be able to swing a deal that pushes the Jets up a notch or two.